Dinosaurs migrated seasonally

Using oxygen in fossilized teeth, University of Colorado researchers have for the first time proved that dinosaurs migrated when conditions became hard, like today’s birds or animals.

They believed that the Camarasaurus dinosaurs would have spent summers in a flood plain lapping up water, and then during the dry season would have headed for the hills where they could find food and ready supplies of water, the Daily Mail reported.

The researchers used oxygen in fossilised teeth to prove that not only did the dinosaurs migrate, it wasn’t a one-off, but instead a regular, seasonal migration, similar to the movements of today’s wild birds and animals.

Radioactive isotopes in fossilised teeth ‘proved’ that dinosaurs were drinking from different water sources in a regular cycle. The researchers concluded that, just like today’s animals, the dinosaurs would move to greener pastures when conditions became hard.

When the dinosaurs "migrated", predators probably followed, said the researchers led by Henry Fricke of Colorado College.